Wives are the Cornerstone of Their Home: Notice in Eph 5:22-33, Col 3:18-19, and 1Pe 3:1-7 that the role of wives is mentioned before that of their husbands. This wasn’t just because of the seeds of chivalry sown in the Christian gospel that elevated the role of women from chattel to fellow heirs with men…
1Ti 3:16 In the previous verse Paul said his purpose for writing to Timothy and the Ephesian church under his care was so that they might know how one is to conduct himself in God’s household. And yet because Paul had previously spent 3 years ministering in Ephesus and Timothy was one of Paul’s most…
1Ti 3:14-15: What plans did Paul have for the future at the time of his writing this epistle? See 1Ti 3:14. What sort of things might cause him to delay in his return to Asia? What does Paul state as his purpose for writing in 1Ti 3:15? Given the preceding and following contexts and his…
1Ti 3:11 Who are the “women” that Paul refers to in 1Ti 3:11? Note Paul’s progression in describing the qualifications for the Church’s ministers from the first words in each of 1Ti 3:2, 8 and 11. How do the qualifications he mentions for these women in 1Ti 3:11 parallel those he gave for men in…
1Ti 3:8 What does the meaning of the word “deacon” communicate about the role of a deacon? See Mat 20:26, 23:11 for instances of the same Greek word. What early action of the apostles gave rise to the office of a deacon? See Acts 6:1-6. As the role of an elder / pastor was to…
1Ti 3:4-5 In what ways is the family at home a microcosm of the Church? See 1Ti 3:15, 5:1-2, Mk 10:29-30. What does this teach us about the importance of the family at home for the health and strength of the Church? What is the answer to the rhetorical question Paul asks in 1Ti 3:5? …
1Ti 3:1 Does the “trustworthy statement” Paul mentions refer to what precedes or what follows? Note: many Bible versions do refer it to what precedes; recall that chapter and verse divisions were not added until the invention of printing. See also 1Ti 4:9 and Tit 3:8 where the phrase refers to what precedes, but 1Ti…
1Ti 2:8 In 1Ti 2:1 Paul stated the importance and priority of prayer for what the true disciples in the church should give themselves, in contrast to the “strange doctrines” to which some were giving themselves; in this verse, who does Paul say has the primary responsibility to pray? Note: the Greek word for “men”…
1Ti 2:6 What is the purpose of a testimony or witness? See John 5:31-39. What is the testimony or witness that Paul speaks of in 1Ti 2:6, for which he was appointed a preacher and apostle (1Ti 2:7)? See beginning in 1Ti 2:4, and 1 Jn 5:6-11. Considering the opposition that Paul had experienced from the…
1Ti 2:5 What is a mediator? Who was the mediator of the old covenant? See Ex 19:21,24, 20:19, Num 16:43-48. What is the importance of a mediator between men and God, and why is it important that the mediator be both man and God? See 1 Sam 2:25a, Job 9:33, Is 59:16. Who is the mediator…